It's not our fight
by alone on the water
Summary: Sequel to "A Pawn of the Gods". Last time I checked, I was fighting at the entrance to the Labyrinth. Not a full day later, I was being sent to another world for an entire freaking year with nothing else but my own belongings. And now, I volunteered to go on a potentially deadly and very dangerous quest. It's not my business, I know, but who can say no to this adventure?
1. Chapter 1 Prologue

**Author's Notes: Hello, peoples of the earth, I have returned with a sequel! Isn't it delightful? (Imaginary crowd claps hands) I know it has been a long time since I last updated, but I do have a lot of schoolwork to do, and life was really hectic. The actual first chapter of this story has already been sent to my beta pjcrazy, but he is currently on a three-week vacation in England, and deliberately not answering my emails, so…the next update is probably going to come up when he returns.**

**Anyways, those who read this chapter in the story "A Pawn of the Gods" can skip this, but wouldn't it be nice to give it another read and refresh your memories?**

**And finally, the disclaimer: I do not own anything except certain original plot points. I swear it in the name of the precious…**

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_Olympus, city of the gods…I have returned._ I smiled as I gingerly traced the thin cracks of the elegant porcelain rims of the fountain bowl with my fingers. Three years ago, I completely destroyed this piece of art during a fight with Ares, the war god. It had been repaired by magic, of course, but there was still a surge of pride when I thought about it. Two years ago, Annabeth, Clarisse and I were standing in the exact same spot when we ran into Hermes, got two presents from him, which were indeed quite useful during our quest in the Sea of Monsters. Now, as I set foot onto the narrow skywalks for the third time in the past three years, the city of Olympus greeted me with the same grandeur and majesty as if it hadn't even aged a day._ But then again, it isn't called "the eternal city" for nothing…_

However, as Annabeth and I strode through the streets of Olympus, holding Blackjack's reins, the dark side of the eternal city became painfully evident. The atmosphere was no longer filled with golden scents of flowers and silvery notes of music. The hawkers at the stalls had blank faces, and the prices have skyrocketed. There was no laughter, only a grim silence, which proved to be quite unnerving for an ADHD demigod like me. The only audible noise came from the forges to the north, where clouds of smoke billowed from the chimneys, and the clanging of metals could be heard from miles away. I instinctively knew what they were making. Weapons, Olympus was preparing for war.

A war was coming.

A war between Kronos and the gods,

I kept my head down as we walked through the marketplace, trying my best to be as inconspicuous as possible. Naturally, it didn't work. Whispers and murmurs followed me wherever I went, and the hushed tones of the speakers expressed a mixture of emotions varying from admiration to pure fury. Suddenly, Annabeth gasped. My head shot up, looking for caught her attention. Annabeth immediately tried to distract me by picking up a pair of Aphrodite QC jeans and babbled about how nice it looked _(I suppose the QC was supposed to stand for "quality-control?")_, but my gaze inevitably fell on the _Hermes' UPS Convenience Store_ off to the side, where stacks of the today's _Olympus Times _piled high on the table at its newspaper-stand section. My own face stared out from the first page, front and center.

I immediately snatched up one of the copies.

"Hey Miss, you have to pay for that!" a man, who obviously owned the place, yelled at me.

Without sparing him another glance, I tossed a drachma onto the desk and flipped to the first page. _THALIA GRACE STEPS DOWN! _One of the headlines stated. _KRONOS RETURNS! _Another one screamed with a blood-red font. And below it, was _KATNISS EVERDEEN, THE NEW DEMIGOD OF THE PROPHECY? (See next page) _There was a small picture of Thalia kneeling before Artemis, obviously taken while she was taking her oath to join eternal maidenhood. But, the rest of the page was covered with several pictures of…me. Twelve year old me, with the lightning bolt in my hands, obviously taken three years ago; thirteen year old me, standing on the beaches of Polyphemus' Island, snarling at the cyclops with Riptide in my hands; and of course, there are also several blurry images of me holding up the sky the other day. In fascinated horror, I flipped the pages again. This time, there was another picture of me and Thalia. Her half of the background was laced with the lightning bolts, and mine was filled with an enormous sea wave. We seemed to be having one of those arguments back at camp.

Annabeth laid a hand on my shoulder. "Katniss, we really should get going." I ignored her and allowed my eyes to zoom in on the article at hand.

_THALIA GRACE VS KATNISS EVERDEEN_

_Who will be the demigod of the prophecy?_

BY JAMES STEVENS, DEMIGOD SON OF HERMES

City of Olympus, Olympus –_Any mention of demigods and prophecies in the same setting generally conjures up images of quests, battles, or maybe even death. And this was no exception._

_The Great Prophecy, the one prophecy issued by the Oracle of Delphi years ago, warned us of a child of the Big Three and the fateful choice tied to him/her that would either save or destroy the gods. For years, we had thought that Thalia Grace, the daughter of Lord Zeus himself, would be the chosen demigod. Powerful, hotheaded and loyal, she seemed to be the only candidate…until she received fatal injuries and was turned into a pine tree to save her life. _

_Immortals all over Olympus then thought it was over. They thought the prophecy may never be fulfilled, until a new demigod was sired: Katniss Everdeen, daughter of Poseidon. She made quite an entrance to fame on her very first quest, finding the Lightning bolt of Lord Zeus and preventing a Civil War between the gods. She has further distinguished herself by finding the Golden Fleece, which saved Camp Half-Blood and healed the aforementioned daughter of Zeus. Thalia Grace might be the one of the prophecy after all, being one full year older than Katniss Everdeen and all that._

_But, things are not always that simple. According to our informant, Thalia Grace has joined the Hunters of Artemis only three days before turning sixteen! Does the prophecy fall to Katniss Everdeen again? What part will Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades play in this matter? _

_The gods and goddess of Olympus all have differing opinions of Katniss Everdeen. Some say she is too powerful, and not to be trusted with so much power. And we at the Olympus Times certainly agree with that one. The explosion that rocked Mt St. Helens a few days ago, according to reliable sources, was the sole effort of Katniss Everdeen herself. However, there are also some who say that she would make the right choice for sure. The question is… can she really be trusted? Are the gods secretly afraid of her powers?_

_We at Olympus Times will do our utmost to reveal the truth! Next week, stay tuned as we uncover Olympus' newest hero, Katniss Everdeen! Who is she really? What is the story behind the lightning bolt? Who are her friends?_

_For more information, please contact Travis Stoll at 537-148-2291._

My knees suddenly felt weak, and the paper fell out of my trembling hands. _The Great Prophecy? Destroy or save Olympus? A choice? Me? _I swallowed hard. "Annabeth, what was the prophecy?"

"Katniss, what is happening?" Annabeth said, concern lacing in her voice.

"What is the prophecy? I need to know it right now. Tell me!" I snapped harshly, but immediately softened as Annabeth flinched at my tone. "Please…I need to know." I pleaded.

Her grey eyes held my mine for a full, tense minute, and I could see the gears running in her head. Then she finally nodded and started to recite solemnly, like a priest saying a prayer:

"_A half blood of the eldest gods,_

_Shall reach sixteen against all odds;_

_A single deadly choice to make,_

_The bane of Olympus to stop or wake;_

_To face and deny the fatal flaw,_

_Or succumb and cause the world to fall."_

I slowly sank to the ground, and hid my face between my knees. It was all too much to take in, and I could feel my strengths seeping through some gaping hole in the front of my body, right where my heart was. It was too late to regret about it right now…oh…how I wish I didn't know anything about it in the first place! I never wanted to be the chosen one, the one who would make a choice that has the power to either destroy or save Olympus. _And not just Olympus, _I huffed bitterly. _The impending war would probably wipe out all of civilization, taking away each and every one of those people who had ever mattered to me._

I finally broke down as the quiet whimpers turned into loud cries. It was all too much for me to take in. And all Annabeth could do, was to sit beside me, and gave me a warm hug. She whispered comforting words in my ears, trying to comfort me, but I didn't think it worked.

After quite a long while, I stood up and composed myself. The future cannot be changed by shedding a few tears. All that is meant to come will come to me when the time is right. I just had to focus on surviving till the next year and try not to get vaporized by the gods because I was 'too powerful', according to the _Olympus Times._ Besides, Ares would just call me a wimp when he sees me red-eyed. I had a meeting to attend.

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The Throne Room door opened soundlessly, expressing a silent welcome. I hesitated for a moment, feeling my heart pounding like a giant drum with a drummer who drank too much coffee, so I took a deep breath, felt Annabeth's hand giving me a reassuring squeeze, and stepped into the room.

Twelve enormous thrones made a U around a central hearth, just like the layouts of the buildings at camp. I looked nervously at my father. He was dressed similar the last time I saw him, with the beach shorts and a trident and all that. I wasn't sure how he would feel about seeing me again, but the corners of his eyes crinkled with smile lines. He nodded as if to say _everything is going to be ok._

And of course, there are always the other gods, all twelve Olympians in one place. So much power in this room…it was a plain miracle that the palace hadn't exploded yet. At the moment, Artemis was standing at the centre of the Council calmly demanding that Zeus step up preparations.

I stood at the doorway awkwardly for a moment, not wanting to interrupt, and then when Poseidon gestured subtly to me, I walked over to his throne and sat at the foot of it. Annabeth pleaded me in a whisper to stop pissing off every godly being I see, and went to sit at the foot of her mother's throne, while Athena frowned disapprovingly at me. Artemis paused for a moment to flash me a welcoming smile, and then she continued her speech. At the foot of _her _throne, Thalia and Zoe were waving at us like two enthusiastic little kids.

Artemis finished her request/demand and walked calmly back to her throne. Apollo tried to poke her with a small twig as she sat, but was stopped when he received a frosty glare from Hera.

Zeus cleared his throat. "Katniss Everdeen!" he called/hollered. I rolled my eyes inwardly and stood up, going to the centre of the council and knelt. Of course, as expected, Zeus went off into a _long_ speech about how he was going to thank me for helping both his daughters (Thalia and Artemis) and how I had done many deeds for the gods, blah blah blah… My knees started to go numb on the hard stone floor. _Ugh…next time I am called in for a council meeting, I am going to stuff extra padding in my pants._

Later, after half of the council was actually asleep (emphasis on _actual_), Artemis publicly thanked Thalia, Zoe and me, which made us all go bright red. She thanked us both for coming to save her, and also for the sacrifice, which had strengthened her to continue carrying the sky.

"I gotta say," Apollo proclaimed. "I like her." He flashed me a toothy grin that nearly blinded me from its brightness. "Thanks for saving my little sister. I owe you one." Artemis threw a right hook straight towards his face when he said the word "little sister", but he didn't seem to mind that much. I blushed furiously and had to bite my lips to stop myself from smiling in embarrassment. _The sun god really was hot…_but then he raised his arms. "Hang on a second; I feel a haiku coming on!"

"Um, yes, first class." Hermes interrupted, without even looking up from his caduceus, like he was anxious to avoid Apollo's poetry. _I didn't blame him._

Next was Hephaestus. He shrunk down to human size and shook my hands. He wore a decent-looking suit, which was a lot better than his workshop outfit, and even his leg didn't seem to be too out of place this time. He had definitely dressed up for the occasion. "You have helped me to clear my workshop of the invaders, and even given it a cleansing with lava." He smiled at me, and there was a twinkle in his eye. "You have helped me and given me back the use of my favorite forge, so accept these gifts as my thanks."

My eyebrows rose high. A gift from Lord Hephaestus himself…Wow… He produced two weirdly-shaped paper packages, and handed them to me. I expressed my thanks and tentatively started to tear away the paper wrappings. The first package turned out to be a long, sleek bow. Flame red, with a stylized fire design running through its length, with a matching full quiver of arrows. Together, they cast a bright red glow, just like fire, but they weren't hot to touch at all.

"You like archery don't you?" He clapped me on the shoulder and smiled at my bewildered expression. "I made this for you. Personalized design, with the blessings of Apollo and Artemis over there (Artemis smiled at me while Apollo flashed a heroic pose)…and…oh yes…the quiver has an unlimited supply of celestial bronze, imperial gold and consecrated silver arrows."

And of course, the other gift was just as stunning: a set of celestial bronze armor, complete with a helmet, and there were intricate flame designs etched on every single inch of the metal. The whole thing was woven with a web of intricate magic, like the high-grade armors sold only in the luxurious sections of the stores, only this time, this was a gift for me, and everything was a perfect fit to my size.

"Thank you so much, Lord Hephaestus." I gasped. This was an amazing gift! My fingers traced the stylized raised fire designs on the bow. "Except… why did you put those fire designs? Not that I don't like it, of course."I hurriedly added as my eyes secretly drifted towards my dad. I was a daughter of Poseidon, yet right now, my outfits were covered with flames. _Uh…hope he will not turn me into a puddle of sea water for ridiculous reasons such as 'losing the heritage of the sea' or something._

"No problem. I always reward valiant acts with wonderful gifts. As for the fire…you'll have to ask Apollo on that one. He burst into my forge yesterday and yelled about changing the designs…so…there you have it." He grinned, and walked back to his throne.

Athena then spoke up. "While I thank the sea spawn-" Annabeth and Poseidon both glared at her. "-ahem, _Katniss,_ for saving my daughter, yet we still need to decide her fate. She is still a child of the Big Three, and most likely the demigod of the prophecy, and therefore potentially very dangerous. Should we risk letting her live?"

Poseidon stood up and slammed his trident on the ground, causing a minor quake to shake the throne room. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING, ATHENA?" He forced out through gritted teeth. I gulped and looked around the room. Annabeth looked frozen with horror, as was Thalia and Zoe.

Athena backed down slightly, but her gaze was still defiant. "She is too unpredictable and too powerful! The explosion at Mt. St. Helens proved that! How do we know we can trust her?!"

The throne room erupted into a flurry of arguments. Gods started yelling at each other, and I saw many gods reaching for their items of power. _Uh oh…things were getting worse, and disastrous, and…did I say disastrous?_

Hephaestus cleared his throat loudly. "Cousins, Typhon himself did not get released in the end anyways, was he?" He produced a hammer and shield from his belt and slammed them against each other, causing everyone to quiet down. "Speaking of children of the Big Three…" He clapped his hand, and an automaton walked into the room. Zoe and Thalia let out loud gasps of disbelief and fear. At a snap of Hephaestus' fingers, the robot's front section swung open, revealing a dark haired, olive-skinned girl, unconscious.

_What the…_my brains did a 360 degree flip before landing back into my skull. Similarly, Thalia and Zoe let out loud gasps and ran towards her. "Bianca!"

Hephaestus snapped his fingers, and the automaton responded by pulling out his sword and stepping in front of Bianca. "How did-?"I managed to get out the words. "What just happened?"

Zoe stepped forward. "Lord Hephaestus…how is this possible? We saw your automaton fall on her! She would have been crushed!"

Hephaestus flashed a rather proud grin: "My automaton fell on her, yes, that is correct. It might seem that she is dead from the outside, but she is actually being transported to my palace through a chip at the automaton's core. That daughter of Hades is certainly very hard to capture."

Zeus boomed: "She is a child of Hades? Then I shall smite her!" He took out his Master Bolt, lifted it up like a javelin player and waited for it to charge. I was shocked. How was this fair? Zeus would let me live and not kill Thalia, but he would strike down Bianca without a qualm? This was wrong. I did the only thing I could.

"No!" I leapt forward and threw myself between the sizzling Master Bolt and the prone form of Bianca lying on the ground. I concentrated my thoughts, completely unaware of the surprised yelps of the other gods as a shield of water formed in front of me. Two other people stood by my side, forming a line to protect the unconscious girl with our own bodies. Annabeth tried to come too, but Athena pulled her back. Zeus was shocked to see me and his daughter run in front of the bolt, but it was already too fully charged for him to draw back. Zeus' lightning bolt flared, releasing a whole universe of bright white and golden colors.

There was a huge explosion. I felt nothing. Gradually, voices began to enter my head and I began to feel surprised. If I was dead, how come I could still hear? There were loud shouts and arguments around me. I slowly forced an eye open. Everything was in utter chaos. The gods were all yelling at each other, and Zeus seemed to have been tackled by my father, as he was now tightly pinned to the floor with a trident pointing straight at his throat. Thalia, Zoe, Bianca and I were in sort of a group hug. Surprisingly enough, none of us were dead. We weren't even singed slightly. Bianca woke up from the mighty explosion and was observing her surroundings with fearful eyes. She seemed to relax when she saw Zoe, though. Zoe fumbled with her ropes and took out her gag. We were all still pretty much shell-shocked, so we stayed in the hugging position and would not let go.

As it turned out, my water shield hadn't been necessary. Apparently, there were quite a few gods on our side. Poseidon had immediately knocked Zeus' hand away with his trident, throwing his aim slightly off course. We still would have been fried, if not for Apollo and Artemis throwing a huge energy shield around us, and Hermes and Hephaestus pitching in. We were safe. As for Annabeth, she was glaring at her mother Athena, who just stared impassively ahead.

"Lord Zeus, please, you cannot kill somebody just because of something they might do."

Zeus' groaned at this turn of events, "Yeah, yeah. I had Poseidon yell in my ear about that. Someone go and get Hades up here." He ordered, and Hermes flashed out, only to return a few minutes later with a black-cloaked figure by his side: it was Lord Hades himself.

"What has happened here? Why is my child hugging that sea spawn?" Hades drawled, completely ignoring the fact that I am still in the room and listening.

Poseidon cleared his throat, retrieved his trident, stood up, and said haltingly: "Brother… Hephaestus found your daughter and brought her here. Zeus tried to blast your daughter and my daughter and her friends tried to protect yours. Because of my daughter, I was forced to intervene. You might say that Katniss and her friends saved your daughter." He rambled on, but I was lost at the words 'brought her here', so the latter words didn't really make any sense to me.

"I was just trying to remove a potential threat." Zeus muttered as he sat back to his throne. "You violated the oath…"

"And you think my daughter is a potential threat?" Hades growled. "I will show you what 'potential threat' is, _little_ brother! You took Maria away from me! I am not going to let you take my kids too!" A cluster of dark energy began to form around Hades' clenched fists, making Zeus back up. _Apparently nobody wanted to receive the wrath of the dead._ "And don't talk to me about violating the oath! What of Thalia Grace? What of Katniss Everdeen? My daughter was born _before _the oath was taken!" he gestured to the sparking bolt in Zeus' hands angrily. "I put her in the Lotus Casino to protect her!" his voice became deathly quiet. "Don't you find it ironic that out of all of you, only _I _was able to keep my oath?" he glared contemptuously at Zeus.

"Lord Hades, stop this! It is no use fighting amongst ourselves! It would only weaken us as a whole!" I raised my voice and put my hands up in a placating gesture. "What you need to be doing is learning to trust us as heroes! Like I said, you cannot punish us just by something we might do."

"This demigod has a point." Demeter chimed in, "You all need more cereal."

"Shut up Demeter!" Hades snapped, but to my relief, the black energy subsided. He turned around, eyes immediately softened as he laid eyes on Bianca. Bianca took a few hesitant steps towards her father, but finally decided to take his hand. And for what would probably be the first and only time, I saw Hades smile.

"I will take her to the underworld and provide her with training." He stated to the rest of the gods. "She will be a true daughter of Hades." Hades then turned to me and extended his hand. "You have done well to save my daughter, sea spawn. I will give you my blessing, allowing you to walk freely in and out of the Underworld. You have my friendship." With that, he flashed out with Bianca in tow.

Poseidon looked over to Zeus, who still had his mouth hanging open in disbelief, and smirked. "Well… that went well." he said to me. I had to put a hand over my mouth to stop myself from grinning.

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Athena sighed. "Now, since _that _matter has been resolved, we still have to decide the sea sp-_Katniss' _fate."

Poseidon raised an eyebrow. "What is there to discuss, Bird Brains?" I stifled a giggle, while Annabeth looked like she was trying to decide whether to laugh or to frown.

Athena glared at Poseidon. "Your child is much too powerful! She is unpredictable and therefore dangerous! How do we know we can trust her?!"

Poseidon facepalmed: "Ah… here we go again. I think we already closed discussion on this issue in our previous arguments?"

Half an hour later, I think I was beginning to understand why Annabeth had tried to distance herself away from me during our first quest. Was this how our parents fought? They probably would have gone on arguing for some time, but they were suddenly all interrupted by Apollo, who shot up, his eyes glowing green for a few minutes, and started saying something in Greek, too fast for anyone to catch. After about thirty seconds, the fit stopped, and Apollo returned to normal. His face was uncharacteristically grim. "I must ask that all demigods except Katniss Everdeen leave the throne room now."

There were a lot of surprised mutterings and whispers, and quite a few protests by Thalia, Zoe and Annabeth, but they were all eventually ushered out and zapped right back into Camp Half-Blood. My heart started beating faster. Apollo had had a vision. Apparently it was secret enough to fit the standards of "for your eyes only". What was it?

Apollo walked to the centre of the Throne Room, breathing heavily, then started chanting in Greek, obviously a prophecy or something. He spoke so fast that even with all the training Annabeth had given me, I was only able to catch a few words. Wait…was it "middle earth" or "the centre of the earth"? _I am not going back down there to the darkness of the lava pits! _And if it was "middle earth", is there some place in the world called "up earth" and "down earth"? I couldn't make much sense of it, but I saw the other gods give gasps of surprise, fear and shock. Poseidon's face paled dramatically, and he got a faraway look in his eyes. I was starting to get frightened now. What was going on? Something told me I was _not _returning to Camp after this.

All the gods burst out in a quick, hurried discussion in Greek. My mind was swirling. I felt like yelling at them until they all stopped arguing and explain what Apollo had said, _in English!_ Finally, Apollo himself took pity on me and knelt before me, shrinking to human size and bringing our eyes to the same level. He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Katniss, I had a vision of the titan's council. Kronos is determined to find you and kill you at all costs. He has already released all the worst monsters of Tartarus in search for you. He knows you will not abandon us, so his only choice is to kill you before the prophecy is fulfilled and try to corrupt Nico for his purposes. Nico can go to the Underworld, he will be well-protected there, but the issue we have right now, is you. He will stop at nothing to kill you, and so I fear that here may not be a safe place for you now." His voice was gentle, knowing how hard the news would be to take.

Oh. So I was now on the Titan Army's most wanted list. I didn't think it would be possible to feel any more afraid than what I had already been feeling. But boy, I was wrong. Earlier, it had just been anxiety and nervousness. Now, it was true blood-curdling fear. Sure, I had faced down a titan. Sure, I had killed tons of monsters. But with all of them working together, with the intention of having me for dinner…it probably was not good at all. "What do I do? Wait… you said… here may not be a safe place to hide anymore. Where am I supposed to go, then?"

"To another world!" Zeus boomed dramatically. Apollo rolled his eyes and went back to his throne, gesturing at Zeus for him to explain. Zeus cleared his throat again, as if he was afraid that somebody might ignore him. "Now listen well, Katniss Everdeen. This secret is a closely guarded secret that no demigod has ever been allowed to know." He leaned in and spoke in a stage whisper. "Other worlds, they exist. This world is called 'Middle Earth'. There are humans, just like here, but there are also a few other races. Occasionally, we, the gods would visit the land once in a while. Artemis, especially, loves to hunt in the forests there. We have all agreed that you will be sent there."

I just stared at him blankly. "Other worlds?" the concept was just too wacky to be true. If someone else other than the king of the gods had told me, I would have laughed in their faces and doused them in pond water to clear their minds up. Even now, I wouldn't have believed Zeus if the other gods hadn't seemed deadly serious, even my dad.

Zeus continued rambling. "Earth is now too dangerous for you to stay. We cannot risk losing you to the enemy, as you are the demigod of the prophecy. So we will send you to this other world for sanctuary. You will stay there for a year, and then return when you are a day from sixteen." Zeus gestured to Hermes, who flashed out, then returned a few seconds later with a two bags stuffed with all I had ever owned in Camp, plus another bag filled with basic supplies like ambrosia and nectar. There was also a very heavy bag that sounded suspiciously like it was full of drachmas. Finally, He brought Blackjack, who immediately cantered over and nuzzled me fondly.

I stepped back, deep in thought. "Oh…" then, looking around at all the packed stuff, I did a double take."Wait, you mean now?!" All the gods nodded as one. I started to hyperventilate. "Wait, what about my friends? I need to say goodbye to them! I need to tell them where I'm going!"

Zeus shook his head. "I don't think you remember it, but didn't I already tell you that this information that other worlds exist must be kept secret?"He sat back and crossed his arms, indicating clearly that the discussion was over.

My father stepped off his throne and walked over to me. He handed me a small box. I opened it, and found a small metal device mounted on a bronze plate. It was connected to a small bronze bowl, which was in turn connected to a spray nozzle. It was painted blue and green, and there was a symbol of the trident inscribed on the bowl. On the bottom, there was the symbol of the maker. One simple letter, Eta, was neatly etched in the metal. I understood what it was: a rainbow maker, for contacting the gods. I turned the machine over in my hands. "Would this even _work _in the other world? I mean, do you get interference or anything?"

Hephaestus chuckled. "Normally, yes, but this is a secure connection for voice calls only. You cannot use it to contact camp, because there is always a possibility for spies among the demigod ranks. Oh, and you can only use this once a day. It needs time to cool down after every use."

I swallowed a lump in my throat. _Just like that? They're just sending me away like that? Not even giving me time to say goodbye?_ It was all happening to fast for me. _Had it really been yesterday when we fought at the entrance of the Labyrinth?_ Now it was only the afternoon of the second day, and I was already being sent to another world for an entire freaking year!

Meanwhile, the gods closed their eyes and spread out their hands. In front of Zeus' throne, a shimmering doorway began to appear. Beyond the doorway, there was a green forest, and the scent of the wild wafted out.

I gulped and took a deep breath. I strapped on my new armor, put my supplies on Blackjack's saddle, _(Hey, I am a Pegasus, not a mule!)_ and hugged my father. I took a deep breath, shouldered my quiver, grabbed my bow, and cordially bid all the gods in the council goodbye, even the ones I didn't like. As I turned to Lady Hestia, she took my hand and placed one of her hands on my forehead. In her gentle, calming voice, she spoke. "Katniss Everdeen. You are a rare hero who cares about family and friends. Where you are going, you will sometimes feel depressed, or hopeless. Hope is scarce in the world. I give you my blessing, therefore, to inspire hope among people. Bring the warmth and joy of family and friends with you. Fire is often a symbol of hope, is it not?" She smiled at me, and my entire body glowed temporarily. My body was suddenly wreathed in flames. For some reason, it didn't burn me, and as Lady Hestia was still holding my hand tightly, I didn't freak out. Good thing too, with so many gods watching me.

"Thank you, Lady Hestia." I smiled at her. I held up my hand and watched the fire dance over it. _Cool. Now I know why the bow had a fire design._

Hestia's gaze became stern. "But you must promise never to use my blessing for hostile purposes unless _absolutely necessary_. Is that clear?"

I nodded. "Perfectly, my lady, I swear it on the River Styx."

She smiled, satisfied, and enveloped me in a hug. "I wish you the best of luck in the other world, girl on fire."

"Yes, may the odds ever be in your favor…" smiled Artemis.

I glanced around the throne room one last time, and cast a longing glance at the doors, where I knew Annabeth and Thalia would be waiting for me to come out. Tears sprang into my eyes, but I didn't allow them to fall. I mounted Blackjack, who sent some comforting thoughts to me.

I spurred her on into a walk, and I rode straight through the portal.

I was in the forest now. I looked back, and saw the doorway rapidly folding on itself. In a few seconds, it winked out of existence.

"You must be Katniss Everdeen; we have been expecting you for a while." A male voice sounded. I instinctively twirled around, expecting to find monsters, yet was greeted with a middle-aged man. He had long, brown hair, a pair of eyebrows that probably resulted from raising his eyebrows too much, and a strangely-shaped crown around his head. He shook my hand, and flashed me a warm, fatherly smile. "Welcome to Rivendell, my dear. My name is Elrond."

~To be continued~


	2. Chapter 2 Finding my way

**Author's Notes: Hello again, and welcome to another update of the story! It's so nice to see you guys again after such a long period, and I apologize for not updating sooner, but I was literally buried neck-deep in my schoolwork. Let's face it, school sucks, but you still have to do it, right? Life is just unfair like that…**

**Other important announcements include the fact that my beta Pjcrazy is still wandering aimlessly around in London, sightseeing and enjoying himself...but fortunately his current residence has wifi, so he has graciously sent me this edited chapter to publish. I will do my best to talk to him annoy the hell out of him with all my spam emails... (Sticks out tongue at him)**

**Anyway, being the selfless friend that I am, I hereby bring to you his word which regretfully announced that the earliest update of his story "Help from another world" is probably going to happen after he comes back, so…to all the readers out there who are interested in his story, please just wait patiently.**

**Disclaimer: This is the last time I will bother to say this, but I do not own anything other than original plots. I trust that your puny little brains can keep that information for the rest of the chapters? Good, then you are not an idiot. No, no, no, don't give me that face, practically everyone is.**

**Without further to say…enjoy the chapter, my friends! Hope to see you all very soon…**

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I spent the last few days familiarizing myself with my new home. Surprisingly, it was not that different from Camp, with pavilions, sculptures, gardens, and sparring fields. It seems that every corner I turned on, I could discover something new. I walked along one of the passageways and ended up on a high garden above the steep banks of the river. Shadows had fallen in the valley below, but there was still a light on the faces of the mountains far above. The whole compound was built like a fortress, yet it was relaxing enough for a person to come and soothe his mind. Time doesn't seem to pass here, it just does.

I didn't want to leave.

Only two weeks since I left my beloved city of Manhattan behind, yet the thoughts of home had already started to constantly nag at me. I greatly enjoyed the peace and quiet of this place, as it helps take my mind off from things like the war preparations back at home, my friends at Camp, and…the _oh-so-very-great_ prophecy that is going to change everything once and for all. But still, Lord Elrond told me to leave for the forests of Mirkwood to deliver a letter of invitation to the elven king who reside there. I had protested a bit (_okay, a lot_) but he just wouldn't budge. And that was why I was now leaning on the railing at the edge of Rivendell with a fully packed backpack, an elvish phrasebook in hand, waiting for Blackjack to arrive.

Lord Elrond had also promised me a guide and a travel buddy, though truthfully I wasn't too keen on travelling with an elf. I had full plans to leave as soon as Blackjack got here and ditch the guide. _Who cares about losing my way in this world? I do dangerous stuff all the time. _It wasn't that I didn't like elves…ugh…how do I say this? They were always so proud and distant, and they studied me like a zoo animal. _They could have been statues for all I cared!_ Well, ok, fine…I will admit that I didn't like them. The only elf I _did _like was Elrond, who had watched out for me since I had arrived; and his daughter Arwen, who had become my only friend here in Rivendell. We had become quite close these days, with me telling her stories of my adventures and she filling me in on the history of the elves.

Speaking of close,_ where the Hades is that horse?_

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Finally, a little black spot came into view with a neigh: Blackjack. She landed on the pavilion with a gallop and slowed to a stop right beside me. She had a pair of bulging saddlebags slung on her flanks. I smiled and stroked her mane as she nuzzled my neck lovingly.

"_They didn't pack any sugar cubes or powdered doughnuts for me, boss." _Blackjack whined indignantly. "_They just keep stuffing my sacks with hay and oats, which are nice enough, but I need sugar! Horses need sugar, especially us Pegasi. We need more glucose to work our wing muscles."_

I shrugged nonchalantly. "Well, the other horses here seem happy enough..." I said, and started doing a last minute check on the supplies. "Wait-since when did you get so science-y?"

Blackjack grinned. _Boss, just how long will it take for you to accept the fact that we Pegasi are smarter than you think? Besides, as your personal steed, I did get a higher level education than the others. That also means I get better food._

"Pfft, really…" I huffed, barely holding back a smirk as I shouldered my bow, "The horses here have never needed sugar or donuts, and they all seem strong and healthy enough."

Blackjack sniffed. "_They don't have Pegasi here, do they? Pegasi are a different breed from normal earth horses…or Middle Earth horse…" _She quickly corrected herself.

I rubbed her flank. "Liar, the other Pegasi at camp eat just the same thing."

"_I said I am your personal steed."_

"Huh…You know, there is this thing in the world called a 'diet', and you could really use one."

"_I resent that statement."_

"Fine, have it your way. Don't say I didn't warn you when you become the fattest horse in Rivendell and fall out of the sky someday."

"_Pegasus!"_

"Whatever." I dug into my pocket and got out a piece of bread smeared with honey, the closest equivalent they had to powdered donuts here and tossed it to Blackjack, who gulped it up triumphantly. We shared a quiet chuckle. It felt so good to be near a familiar person/Pegasus in this strange new world. _And no, I do not have Asperger Syndrome._

Suddenly, someone cleared their throat behind me. I yelped in surprise, dropping my packs, whirled around in one fluid motion, and ended up in a battle stance with Riptide raised high. The speaker behind me chuckled and held out his hands, palms out, in the universal gesture of _peace._ "Easy there, I mean you no harm." I studied the man curiously, reluctant to lower my sword just yet. I'd say he was around middle-aged, with ragged hair-cut and random stubbles sticking out all over his face. He wasn't an elf, I am positively sure of that one. _All the elves I'd met around here were always clean shaven and always so concerned with their personal hygiene._

Anyway, back to the man. I was quite surprised, as I had never even heard him coming. He really looked the part of a traveler, with a long, stained cloak and a staff in his hands. I noticed the glint of a sword hilt by his belt, half concealed by his cloak. Was _he _the guide Elrond had promised? The stranger cleared his throat again, and I realized that I was still pointing Riptide at him. He eyed Riptide slightly, and said: "You can put your sword away now. I said I am not here to harm you."

I eyed him warily, still trying to wrap my head around the fact that he could easily see through the Mist and know that Riptide is a sword not a baseball bat, but he seemed quite friendly. That and the fact that he hasn't pulled out his sword on me yet made me decide to trust him. I capped Riptide and put it back into my pocket. The stranger raised an eyebrow as he saw the sword shrink, but he made no comment.

Blackjack curiously nosed forward and studied the man. He smiled at Blackjack and started stroking her forehead. "Fine steed you have there. Do you speak Elvish?" He asked. Blackjack drew herself up proudly. I could hear her giggling over our link. I sent her the mental equivalent of an eye roll and wondered if he had noticed her wings. Blackjack kept them tightly tucked against her sides most of the time, as they usually freaked many people out. Hopefully, he had noticed nothing strange.

"Um… no…I am just…a visitor there, that's all." I replied tentatively.

The man looked confused. "But how else were you able to converse with your steed? I was not aware that horses could communicate in a language other than elvish." He slowly approached Blackjack, and softly muttered something in her ear.

Through the mental link, I could hear him saying something in elvish (which I _still _haven't been able to understand yet) suddenly, Blackjack shuddered, and the meaning of the words became clear to her/me. He was asking for her friendship.

Blackjack looked at me questioningly, and I shrugged. _Sure, why not?_

Blackjack then nosed the stranger, who chuckled quietly and handed her a carrot from his pack. He then turned to me and held out his hand. "I'm afraid that I may have been too hasty. I have not even introduced myself yet. I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn, and I will be your guide for the journey to Mirkwood. It is an honor to meet you, Lady Everdeen. Shall we leave now?"

"_How in the name of Hades does he know my full name? I never told anybody my full name here!" Well, maybe Lord Elrond, but still…_ I shook away the question for now and hesitantly shook his hand. "Do you have a horse, Aragorn?" I asked.

He gave a sharp whistle, and a beautiful white stallion trotted up to him. He swung himself into the saddle and grinned at me. "Shall we, Lady Everdeen?"

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**Six days later…**

"Spit it out! Spit it out!" Aragon yelled frantically. There was no argument there. My stomach ached, and waves of nausea were starting to wash over me. Apparently I wasn't quite ready to forage for herbs myself yet. I spat out the roots from my mouth as fast as I could, but I had already swallowed a few. My stomach still ached horribly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Aragorn rustling through his pack, coming up with something, and then shoving it down my throat. I gagged at the sickly sweet taste and immediately started throwing up. After a while, I finally felt better. I sat back, gasping in relief. My throat was raw, and my stomach was complaining angrily, but at least the nausea and the sharp pangs of pain were gone. Beside me, Aragorn sighed in relief and slumped back against a stump, and then tossed me a filled-up waterskin to soothe my throat, which I gratefully accepted.

After a short period of silence, I spoke up. "I thought you said wild parsnip roots were edible and harmless." After so many days of travelling and watching Aragorn do all the work of cooking our meals, I had volunteered to help forage for all the herbs and spices that Aragorn used in his cooking. He had been reluctant at first, but had then given me a few pointers on edible herbs and what features to look out for.

Aragorn coughed and glared at me, "I did say that. I also remember telling you to stay away from poison hemlock. And besides, did I not remind you not to put any plant in your mouth without first checking with me?"

_Oh…that would explain it…_I groaned in frustration. "But the flowers were small and arranged in a dome, just like you said wild parsnip was supposed to look like! How was I supposed to tell the difference?"

Aragorn sighed and dragged me over to the offending plant. He pulled it out and pointed out the red mottled markings on the stem of the plant. "Do you see those markings? These markings are only found on hemlock." He shook his head exasperatedly. "And did you think to crush some of the leaves before swallowing some of the roots?"

I sheepishly shook my head.

Aragorn crushed some of the leaves and put them under my nose. I immediately recoiled at the foul smell. Aragorn nodded matter-of-factly. "Hemlock has a foul smell when crushed, unlike its cousins, which can give off sweeter scents."

"Right…I will remember it." I sniffed and sighed.

Aragorn smiled wryly. "Maybe the fault wasn't all on your side, Katniss. I should have been more detailed in my instructions."

I got a sinking feeling in my gut. "Oh no… don't tell me…"

Aragorn smirked. "I will have to teach you how to identify herbs, poisonous plants and their antidotes. For example, Olibanum…" He pointed towards tiny specks of substance left over on his hands, (apparently the result of shoving them down my mouth a few moments earlier), "is a common antidote to combat this poison."

Ugh…I knew it, another class. Aragorn had already been already been teaching me swordsmanship the last few days. I had considered myself a good swordsman (swordswoman?) back at Camp Half-Blood, and I could hold my own in a fight pretty well, but Aragorn was on a whole new level entirely. Every time we spar, he amazes me with an entirely new move, disarming me without even breaking a sweat. Thrusts, parries, ripostes, footwork…I certainly had a lot to learn. He had also been teaching me some rudimentary elvish so that I wouldn't make a fool of myself when we reach Mirkwood. Honestly, it was exhausting. I certainly didn't need another class. But one look at the mess I had made on the forest floor, and the hemlock roots, I knew I had no choice. _It does take a lot to survive in this world…_

Aragorn raised an eyebrow. "Come now, it's not that bad. Besides, this is an important skill. I can't always be there to shove an antidote down your throat whenever you ingest a toxic plant. Some plants don't even have cures."

I sighed and nodded reluctantly, looking down. Aragorn put a hand under my chin and tipped my head up, forcing me to look into his face. We had a brief staring match, before our faces broke out into matching grins.

"Alright, then, here is lesson one. Go and collect all the plants within twenty footsteps that you think can be eaten, and then I will drill into your head which ones are edible and which are not." Aragorn relaxed against the stump, smirking.

I rolled my eyes, "Yes, sir."

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The following days passed quickly. After that little incident with me almost dying from food poisoning, we continued to make good progress towards the Greenwood forests (Aragorn told me that "Greenwood" was the name of Mirkwood before the Necromancer and Sauron's darkness entered the place). We would ride at a casual walk for the most part of the day, chatting and laughing, in no particular hurry. Aragorn would also drill me on my elvish phrases while we rode. Simple phrases like "Ci fêl, (thank you), Mae g'ovannen! (Well met), Ni veren an gin govaned (I am happy to meet you)." Half the time, I could never remember those tricky phrases and had to depend on Blackjack, who had that instinctive grasp of elvish to help me out. _Aragorn never suspected a thing._ Lunch was often a piece of elvish bread eaten in the saddle, while Blackjack and Snowfire (I just gave a random name to Aragorn's horse because there was no way I could pronounce its original name) ate out of bags of oats attached to their necks.

In the evening, we would come to a rest and stop for the night. We sparred for about half an hour, (more like I got bruised and battered for half an hour while Aragorn was never even out of breath), then I would be sent to gather herbs for dinner. And if I got any wrong, I would have to then listen to a long lecture, then learn the correct antidote, and then recite them from memory. Blackjack often found it very amusing, and would chuckle while I sat through the lessons…_most perfect form of torture for a demigod_. But honestly, I found that I was actually enjoying it. After dinner, Aragorn would build a fire, and then the both of us spread out our bedrolls and sleep. Over the next few days, I found that I was steadily improving. I could last a bit longer during our sparring sessions, and I could identify about half of the herbs I saw by the roadside now, though Aragorn would still laugh and point out half a dozen mistakes at a drop of a hat.

Overall, it was a nice trip. It felt so nice to be safe and relaxed, not short of time on a deadly quest, not being pursued by hordes of monsters from Tartarus, not having to be on high alert on every second of the day. It was like a long vacation from fear and anxiety.

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Later, we hit the Misty Mountains. It would have been a long, dangerous climb to the top, but Blackjack just spread her black wings and flew to the entrance of the pass in about ten minutes. (_Perks of having a Pegasus…_)I expected Aragorn to take a few hours at least climbing up, and settled down for a nap, only to be woken not half an hour later with a sword slightly grazing my neck and Aragorn's laughter. "A warrior never lets down her guard."

He would never tell me how he got up there so fast, though I suspected he knew some sort of secret passageway or something. There was absolutely no way for him to have gotten Snowfire to climb up the mountain that quickly.

For the rest of that day, Aragorn led Snowfire carefully on the winding pass between the mountains while I soared easily above him on Blackjack. I wondered, with a sense of terrible foreboding, why he was wearing that familiar smirk on his face, the 'I-know-something-that-you-don't-but-I'm-not-going -to-tell-you-because-it -will-be-fun-to-watch-you-figure-it-out-yourself' type of smirk. I shrugged it off and continued to soar along the pass—until a Rock giant opened his eyes and tried to swat Blackjack out of the air with a massive boulder. I screamed in terror, causing Blackjack to instinctively swerve, saving both of us. I stuck to the ground after that.

Then, there were times when Aragorn insisted on riding through the night and not stopping for a rest. The blood curdling howls of goblins and some strange creatures known as "orcs" rung through the nights, and that for me was enough reason. I did see an unfortunate deer get ripped to shreds by several of these foul creatures, and there was no way I was adding myself to their menu.

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**Twenty Days Later…**

_Mirkwood. It was just so…big._ Aragorn and I trudged slowly, leading the horses by the reins. This was elf territory, so…probably a bad idea to just barge in like a brainless Minotaur. That was just asking to become living pincushions.

As we entered the woods, I kept glancing around suspiciously, trying to catch a glimpse of those wood elves. Were they waiting for us? To be fair, Aragorn and Elrond had promised the elves would be friendly, but frankly, my own experiences with them left me with a slight apprehension at the thought of approaching them. Their emotionless masks make it impossible to know what they might do next. They could just as easily tie me up in a potato sack and throw me in a dungeon as they could receive me kindly.

As we passed through the outer fringe of the forest and deeper into the woods, I started hearing rustling sounds around us. Without a word, I notched an arrow, kept the tip pointed low to the ground, yet wavered under Aragorn's disapproving glances and reluctantly put the arrow back into my quiver.

We didn't speak.

After maybe half an hour since we entered the forest and still no sign of life except for the occasional woodland creature and a lot of suspicious rustling, I lost it. _What can I say? I'm ADHD. Sue me._

"I KNOW YOU'RE THERE! COME OUT AND TALK TO US FACE TO FACE!" I exploded, startling Aragorn, whose hand immediately flew to the hilt of his sword. Blackjack and Snowfire neighed and reared up. Blackjack's wings flaring out momentarily.

Aragorn glared at me sternly. "Do _not_ do that again, Katniss Everdeen."I gave a sheepish grin.

Suddenly the rustling sounds got louder, and a humanoid shape smoothly slid out of the branches and dropped directly in front of us. _Oh great…not another elf!_ I mentally groaned, readied my fighting stances, and trained an arrow on the incoming individual.

He was dressed in clothes of brown and green so he blended in perfectly well with the forest. He was about the same height as I was, with cold blue eyes and long golden hair. I suppressed the urge to giggle and call him 'goldilocks', as he also had an arrow that was pointed at me.

"_Pe-Channas _(Idiot)," He smirked coldly.

I bristled and yelled indignantly. "Hey!" I had no idea what that word meant, but his tone and expression had made his meaning vastly clear. I immediately made a mental note that I didn't like him. "Who are you?" I called out and took a step forwards, not even slightly intimidated by the bow and arrow in his hands. _I have been in worse situations before…like staring down a dozen gods while they were trying to decide whether I should be blasted to the depths of Tartarus by the Master Bolt._

He turned to Aragorn, completely ignoring my existence, and said: "Aragorn, ista peded edhellen?"(Does she speak elvish?) Ooh, this elf was getting on my nerves. My demigod senses picked up roughly a dozen elven archers hidden in the forest, each of them trained their arrow on me. As if on cue, the elf turned to me and shook his head condescendingly, as if to warn me not to fight them, then turned away.

Aragorn sighed and spoke to the elf. "Legolas, am man?" (Legolas, why?)

Legolas (_Hey, I just found out his name!_) sighed, and put his bow away. "ú-edhel." (She is not an elf.)

Aragorn frowned. "Legolas, An ngell nîn." (Legolas, please.)

Legolas frowned too, but he nodded reluctantly. "Aphado nin." (Follow me.)

Aragorn relaxed. "Ci fêl, Legolas." He nudged me.

I sighed. "Ci…Fel…" I got out, trying to remember the exact pronounciation, but failed miserably and ended up sounding like "see" and "fell". From Legolas' smirk, I could just tell that I would not enjoy my stay here.

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We continued to trudge through the dense foliage, and I was going crazy. Darkness loomed here, almost as evil as the darkness in the Labyrinth. The water in the river was inky black, and it reeked with a foul stench.

Then, there were signs of the local wildlife. It was indeed unnerving. Aragorn had told me of the Mirkwood's magnificence before the darkness had come. He spoke of green towering trees, flowers, beauty and peace. I sure wasn't seeing any of that now. The towering trees were there, but the leaves were withered and black. The flowers looked way too colorful, and I recognized at least six different poisonous plants from my lessons with Aragorn.

What I saw next made me gulp: webs, or more specifically, spider webs. Not those small webs you can see in the gardens in the morning, glistening with dew, thank you very much. No, this is similar to the dusty cobwebs in old attics, enlarged by at least fifteen times. That's what I saw, stretched at the bases of trees, and over the branches. _This would certainly be the death of Annabeth…_I quietly chuckled.

As it was, I was pretty freaked out too. With webs that big? Oh gods forbid…I definitely did not want to meet the spider. I started imagining seeing glowing red eyes in the trees everywhere. The image was way too difficult for my mind to accept, so I uncapped Riptide. That seemed to earn a brief reprieve. The metallic glow of my trusty sword seemed to drive the things away for a while. We continued the journey in cautious silence.

That night, the elves made camp. Apparently, the Mirkwood was so big that it would take another day at least before we reached the Halls of the Elven King. The elves set up small, lightweight tents that reminded me sharply of the Hunters' tents._ Thalia_…my heart ached, but I willed myself to swallow back my tears.

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Screams…yells…and there was something that caught fire right outside my tent. I groaned and pulled myself up from the makeshift bed, and saw figures running around wildly. There were the lithe silhouettes of the elven archers, with their bows drawn to their maximum capacity; and there were also monstrous shapes that had…eight legs?

"Boss! It might be a great time for you to wake up by now!" Blackjack's voice entered my mind.

I grabbed Riptide and burst out my tent, running straight into Blackjack. Without hesitation, I swung myself into the saddle, and shot into the sky. There were shapes moving around in the darkness. I could sense them. I saw Aragorn running with Legolas towards one of those figures, and I swooped down to join them. Not to help the elf, mind you, but to help one of my very few friends here in Middle Earth.

Thinking back, perhaps I should have thought it through a little. Annabeth always said I was too hot headed for my own good. The last thing I remembered was a white flash behind my head as something bashed me from behind.

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**Let us celebrate with the end of another wonderful chapter! Please, leave a review and tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3 ANNOUNCEMENT

**Important Announcement:**

**Hello there, and here is Alone on the Water. I am very sorry to announce that this story is going to be temporarily put on hiatus because I am suffering from a severe case of writers' block. For those who have shown their interest in this story, thanks so much, I appreciate it, and I hope you could forgive me too. (hides from a shower of grenades)**

**Anyways, I just want to say that I will return to this story some time later when I actually have some creative ideas to write about. IT WILL NOT BE FORGOTTEN. I SWEAR IN THE NAME OF THE PRECIOUS.**

**Finally, I am currently working on the sequel "Lest we forget". It is a pjo/Hunger Games crossover, so if anyone is interested, go and check it out. Leave a review, if you would.**

**So long for now, folks, and hope to see you again soon.**


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